I love pit bulls.People have to understnad that they have been bred over and over again to be dog aggressive.Dog aggression in pit bulls doesnt suprise me a bit.Not all them have it but most do.Im not scared of them and have never had a bad experience with one with humans.I have had a bad experience with one when it came to dogs.My rottweiler loves people but some dogs he wants to kill.He picks what dogs he likes and what ones he doesnt.Its never a certain breed or sex.Im working on it with him.Hes doing much better now.Pit bulls are the most affectionate breed I have ever came into contact with.

My rottie got attacked by a golden retriever a while back.Do I blame the breed no.Do I blame the owner yes.No dog should be off leash.Not even little dogs.If you can catch your dog easily or have it come to you on command then to me its fine off leash.But the dog should be 100% reliable.My older cocker is reliable off leash.He stays right beside me and I can out run him anyday.I have seen little dogs do just as much damage as big dogs.

i have not had any bad encounters with an APBT or a few of the other bully breeds. there are however tons of breeds not on the BSL lists that i have had consistent problems with.

would I feel safe walking down the street alone and coming across a pitbull off leash ..... yes.

would I feel safe walking down the street with one of my dogs and coming across a pitbull off leash .... no. i base that solely on the fact that i have read countless times on this board and others that pitbulls should never be trusted not to fight other dogs. they have a high small animal prey drive. and they were specifically bred eons ago to fight other dogs. so if i came across one on a walk with my dogs yes i would be very hesitant. do i think that makes them a bad breed ? absolutely not. this is the breed. while many many pitbulls can and do get along wonderfully with other animals it is not something that should be expected of the breed. i respect that and as much as i like the breed i also enjoy having a multi pet household. so i know that a pitbull would not be a breed that would be for me.

i do not buy into the whole " its bad owners not bad breeds " philosophy. at least not entirely. all the breeds we have were created for special purposes. they have been bred for hundreds, even thousands of years to be what they are and it is that that seperates them from other breeds. i dont believe that you can take a specific breed, insert any breed here, and turn it into something it isn't. i think it is naive to think that and also shows no respect for that breed and what it is. i do think though that there are bad owners that can make bad dogs and good owners that can make good dogs. a good owner is going to make a huge difference in how a particular dog acts but it is not going to take out the ingrained behaviors and instincts that the breed was created for.

and there is a lot more to a dog being a good dog then just who owns it. breeding can play a huge part in it. socialization and environment only plays one part.

I've read every reply and what stands out the most is the fact that this is the way they are - it's in their character to have a high prey drive and a strong dislike for other animals.

So HOW can they be expected to live in a world full of other animals? Case in point, the one that bit Tyson is now confined to his yard and tied to a tree. The owners are probably afraid to even attempt to walk him (I know Tyson's medical bills were well over $5,000.00).

I'll be the first to admit it, my Yorkie, has a high prey drive also. She will bark and run up to a dog, but the minute she gets there she sniffs and checks them out. She does not grab for their throat and lets face it, even if she did chances are it wouldn't be life threatening. And yes we are working on the running up part!

At my Vet's office, pitbulls are given early morning or late evening appointments. They have had more than one attack in the waiting room.

I am afraid of them and at the same time my heart breaks for an animal that just cannot adapt to a normal way of life!

I have seen many dog aggressive dogs get oevr their aggression.the dog whisperer has helped putbulls who were fighting dogs before.Like his pitty Daddy used to be a fighter.Now he brings Daddy with him when he has a dog aggressive dog.They can live normal lives,they just need the right owner to work with them.My rottie has a extremely high prey drive.He would kill my cat if given the chance.My trainers GSD hates cats but he is best friends with all ehr 7 cats.he licks them and everything,BUT any other cat he will kill. It takes time and pateince.They can live normal.If I were the owner of the pitbull you are talking about I would be out working with it everyday and helping it get over its aggression

As some know I own a Pit mix and he lives with 2 other dogs in my house. I have had not one problem with him with my dogs or any other dogs. Not all dogs get along with each other no matter what the breed is. Yes Pits are known for having dog agression but not all Pits carry that trait.

BSL is a very slippery slope. Once they start banning Pits and other "dangerous" breeds where does it stop. There should be tougher laws on dogs that attack, regardless of breed. Thats the bigger message here. Not outright banning breeds. Because then you take away the good dogs who did nothing wrong. And you punish the good owners who know how to raise their animals.

Legislation is due, laws are in order, and the situation is out of hand. Let's be sure of our focus. Laws are for humans, not for animals who have no say about the captive environment they must endure.

The list I lifted from a website, I thought was an italian government based website, but it wa a while ago, so I am unsure anymore, I am sorry if some of the breeds were wrong, but I didn't compile the list myself. I do know that most of those breeds are infact baned though.

I still feel that BSL will not solve the dog bite numbers.

As for kitchner whne people there start getting ahold of other larger, mostly larger than pitties, dogs serious dog bite numbers are sure to go up. I think that when they get a breeding base of cane corso, or tibetian mastiffs or another breed they treat badly and breed aggresion into, it will happen again.

I still feel safer with dangerous dog laws then BSL, that way any dog that has showen aggression is taken into consideration. Back where I grew up the rule was 3 bites then dead, not restrictions on the dogs after the first bite nothing, just 3 bites then dead, that didn't work either.

they can expect to live in a world full of animals if they are kept responsibly, as with any other breed. the problems arise when people are irresponsible in their handling of any breed and when they do not respect their breed for what it is.

I've owned the APBT for the last 19 years . In the last 6 years i've owned a multi dog house hold of APBT. Yes the breed can be dog on dog aggressive. My female Tigger borders on the total idiot.Every dog she sees if not living in our house hold she'll attack and try to kill.She's a hot dog. With Tigger I take the proper precautions so she wont fail. We know how to handle her. When she's walked it's not at prime time, She has free reign of the yard ,she's not tied to a tree, but she's properly restrained in the yard. She just don't like other dogs, so no dog parks or play dates. She has a play mate,she has Piper and they get along great. She lives a perfectly normal happy life.When she goes to the vet ,she goes through the back door and out the back door ,so no doggy encounters.

Now Piper on the other hand is a cold dog so far. She's the oppisite extreme of Tigger.It depends on each dog.It's up to the owner to take the proper steps to control their dog.It's not the dogs fault for doing what comes naturally to them , it's the owners fault.

The APBT ,I love the breed and will always have one to two in my life.

At my Vet's office, pitbulls are given early morning or late evening appointments. They have had more than one attack in the waiting room.

I am afraid of them and at the same time my heart breaks for an animal that just cannot adapt to a normal way of life!

I live in a large Metropolitan City and the Vets I know favor the pitbull above most breeds. They're easier to treat, draw blood, trim nails, give shots than most other breeds. They sit in the waiting room like statues waiting to be seen while other dogs are barking and being a problem.

Most boarding kennels I've talked with say the pitbull is their breed of choice when dealing with boarders. They're well mannered, obey, take medications better if, necessary, and wait patiently for their owners more so than any other breed.

Most professionals in Animal Health and Boarding love a "family oriented" pitbull over most breeds as far as them being bitten or attacked.

As far as adapting to a normal way of life, pitbulls can be a bit smarter and cunning than most Humans. It takes more than the "Casual" dog owner to have them. I think more on the lines of "being a privilege" of having a pitbull living with you. A lot of people abuse that privilege.

Instead fearing the pitbull, maybe you should start fearing the low-life criminals that want to drag this breed down in the gutter with them.

PitPat , well said. With Tiggers dog aggression so off the hoof ,this is why I take through the back door at the vets.Or very early in the morning so she's not waiting in the waiting room.I muzzle her to.I've owned 5 dogs ,Tigger is the only one like this.You know something though ,I wouldn't trade her for anything ,and I trust 110% with humans ,especially children.She loves them.

Here's a little story about Tigger and her tolerance of children. This was about 2 years ago on Superbowl Sunday. She was hanging down stairs with everyone sleeping on the couch , my hubby had friends over . Nikki at the time was 2 ,he came over to where Tig was sleeping and smaked her on the head with one of her marrow bones hard , she looked up at him ,no curled lips ,no growl , nothing. Layed her head back down and went to sleep. Now that's tolerance.

yorkiemalt, i have found out that pits here are bred with aggression in oklahoma. people still fight them so they want that aggression.

i just hope not all these pups are like the one i had. i still have the marks on me from her.. i should have listen to my hubby he is from here and know more about how they are bred here. i am just glad i did not have a little dog an i put our cat in our bedroom (the cat is not play good with dogs and she is going to have kittens soon so she is getting grumpyer) i have seen so many pits running lose around here it is not funny. one day a pit was chaseing a teen the teen jump a fence to get away from the pit.

the ather day a pit and a rottie was trying to get to my dogs and my dogs where in there backyard.

we are moving out of the city i hope next month.my family has over 40 acres. i am going to try my luck on a wild-boar dachshund.she is only a week old. i am done with pits from oklahoma...

pharlane - I'm sorry you had that experience. Lexi's teeth skimmed my face but my friend was sitting right there and grabbed her immediately (I guess that makes her a responsible owner). Keep in mind that I had known her for over 5 years, since she was an 8 week old puppy. Anyway, I could continue the story and tell about what happened to my friend's daughter's minpin - Lexi didn't like her either.

It is such a touchy subject with such a wide range of emotions.

The majority of people who believe that if "owned by a responsible owner" just doesn't wash with me. Even an owner cannot be on top of a dog every second of everyday. To me, even the best training cannot erase what is instinct to an animal.

Their supporters even state that they "do not like other animals". It is a natural behavior/instinct for them.

Well where I live, a small lake community, there are dogs everywhere! I do not think it is fair to these animals to be kept away from normal everyday life. What, they have to be walked when nobody is around - hard thing to do! Taken to the Vet after-hours through a back door.

Omg , so what are you saying, ha? Right now Tig is playing out side perfectly happy with Piper. There are plenty of dog on dog aggressive dogs in society that adapt well.I don't like dog parks, and Tigger is not missing much ,she's walked in the morning ,loves her people . She gets plenty of human interaction ,she has Piper and my 3 cats fot animal company .

Yeah you have to be responsible with your dog and know your dog. Believe me i'll take Tig and Piper over most Labs any day. They are friendlier and trust worthy.